Shoreline Community College and a college in China are working on a collaborative program that would expand the connections that are bringing Chinese students to Shoreline.

Shoreline President Lee Lambert recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ningbo City College, located in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, just south of Shanghai. “I first met Li Taiwu, President of Ningbo City College about a year ago,” Lambert said. “This MOU, I hope, will become the third international program under our relationship with Tsinghua University.”

This past October, Shoreline signed agreements with Tsinghua and Qingdao universities for a “1 +1 +2” plan. After their first year, students from the two Chinese universities can come to Shoreline for the second year toward a two-year associate’s degree from Shoreline. With a Shoreline degree in hand, those students could then apply for admission to a four-year university in the U.S.

The MOU with Ningbo City College includes a similar arrangement for their students.

Ningbo City College is a public full-time post-secondary college that focuses on employment-and-ability-based education. Programs at the college are closely tied to business and industry needs in the surrounding area.

A port city, Ningbo has been an important trade and commercial hub since the Tang and Song dynasties. It is one of the three biggest industrial centers in Zhejiang Province. It has the biggest deep-water harbor and the port moves the most cargo in China. Industries include textile, fashion, machinery, petrochemical, steel, electric power, papermaking, electronic information, mechatronics and biotech. The Ningbo municipal government is working develop high-end modern services to meet the needs of the increasingly foreign-based economy.

Ningbo City College has 428 full-time faculty and staff serving a total of 7,818 full-time students. The college offers 37 diploma programs of higher vocational education and four bachelor degree programs. They also have a cooperative agreement with Western New Mexico University.

Lambert has made a number of additional stops on this trip, too.

“During a brief stop in Seoul, Executive Director of International Education Diana Sampson and I met with our partners from Ajou Motor College,” Lambert said. “This is a partnership was established in 2006 when I accompanied Washington’s former Gov. Chris Gregoire on a trade mission to Korea. Boryeong, Ajou’s hometown, is also a sister city to the City of Shoreline.We host a group of about 20 Ajou students during the summer to learn about applied automotive service.”

Lambert said the Korean Ministry of Education has designated Ajou Motor College as a "World Class College." This means in part they will provide a greater leadership role to other Korean colleges in building and establishing international partnerships and relationships, he said.

From Seoul, Lambert met up with Shoreline’s Assistant Director for International Outreach Bo Fu in mainland China.

“We visited the city of Cixi, invited by the mayor to discuss U.S. higher education partnerships,” Lambert said. “While there, we visited a technical high school where the students receive a stipend to attend.”

Lambert said they saw the school’s CNC machining and electrical training programs which appeared to be quite advanced. “Many of the students will graduate and go directly to the workforce. A smaller number will go on to a Vocational College or University,” Lambert said. “The principal was interested in setting up an English language training program.”

While in Cixi, Lambert and Fu toured the Geely automotive plant. Geely is the company that bought Volvo and sells passengers cars under three other brand names, including, Emgrand, Englon and Gleagle.

“Bo and I also travelled to YuYao city where we have an established international program with the top high school in the city,” Lambert said, adding that the program was established through a partnership with the Heibei Study Abroad Institute of Tsinghua University.

“I met with a group of more than 20 students. At least half are planning to attend Shoreline,” Lambert said. “We visited another high school in YuYao and are hoping this will become the site of another international program. We also visited an experimental middle school to meet with parents interested in sending their children to the international program at YuYao high school and potentially on to Shoreline.”

Lambert also visited the Nanjing Institute of Technology.

Nanjing officials have visited Shoreline with the Vocational Education and Leadership Training program sponsored by the American Association of Community Colleges and the China Education Association for International Exchange. While here, Nanjing expressed interest in Shoreline’s world-renown Professional Automotive Training Center. Now, Nanjing officials are interested in a diagnostics and torque training program that could start as early as this summer. That training is available as part of Shoreline’s participation with the National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) and its industry partners, including Snap-on Corp. Lambert currently serves as president of NC3.

“They wanted to reassure me that they are seeking support from the Chinese Ministry of Education to bring this long anticipated program into reality,” Lambert said.

Lambert may also meet in Beijing with former NBA star, Seattle SuperSonic and Washington State University basketball player James Donaldson. “I just learned that (Donaldson) would like to meet with me while in Beijing,” Lambert said. “James is a member of the Washington State Chinese Chamber of Commerce, which I am now on the board, overseeing the Chamber's educational initiatives. He would like to discuss teacher training as he is involved with the NBA in China.”

Lambert said he has additional stops scheduled to visit a partner high school in Zouping, Qingdao University in Qingdao and Chongqing to speak with financial participants in the proposed privately funded student housing project.

SCC/Jim Hills

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